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Star Trek Team Say Next Movie Will Deal With "Issues"

io9 have a report from The LA Times that the next Trek movie will be a lot more socially conscious.
The LA Times caught up with Director JJ Abrahms and Co-Writer Robert Orci on the set of their TV show Fringe and asked them about the plot of the next Star Trek movie. They said that the major difference between the first one and its sequel will be a much more socially conscious message..

"The first movie was so concerned with just setting up the characters — their meeting and galvanizing that family — that in many ways a sequel will have a very different mission. it needs to do what [the late 'Trek' creator Gene] Roddenberry did so well, which is allegory. It needs to tell a story that has connection to what is familiar and what is relevant. It also needs to tell it in a spectacular way that hides the machinery and in a primarily entertaining and hopefully moving story. There needs to be relevance, yes, and that doesn't mean it should be pretentious. If there are simple truths — truths connected to what we live — that elevates any story — that's true with any story."

Well, that doesn't mean we are going to be lambasted with allegory does it? But then there's this from Orci:

"We got a lot of fan response from the first one and a considerable amount of critical response and one of the things we heard was, ‘Make sure the next one deals with modern-day issues.' We're trying to keep it as up-to-date and as reflective of what's going on today as possible. So that's one thing, to make it reflect the things that we are all dealing with today."

The LA times reporter then asked if that meant the movie will deal with
"terrorism, the ethics of torture, or a long-running, painful war with the Klingons." Apparently Orci acted as if the reported had just read his mind!

So, it would seem we might be seeing those pesky Klingons in the sequel after all. As well as yet another message about how war and torture and all that stuff is really bad! Ah well, if Abrahms is true to his word and avoids pretension, I'm sure it will be done well.
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Rorschach01
9/16/2009
io9.com

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44 Comments

Why do you write so many articles Ror?
Ozymandias - 9/16/2009, 8:49 AM
I put this up like 30 min or an hour ago in the News section. It's good news though...
Bamf7 - 9/16/2009, 8:51 AM
I just finished with season one of Fringe, it was crazy seeing Spock on the show (Nemoy).



LiquidSnake - 9/16/2009, 8:54 AM
Sorry Bamf, i did see your article but you have copied and pasted it completely from Cinema Blend, as you have the other articles in the news section which i would be happy to front page if you tweek them into your own words a bit.

Ozy, thats the 2nd time you have asked me that. What the [frick] do you expect me to answer? Because its my job!
Rorschach01 - 9/16/2009, 8:54 AM
Sure thing man...I'll do it. Thanks!
Bamf7 - 9/16/2009, 8:56 AM
I think new badass Kligons with slightly re-designed makeup would be awesome. Something a little more subtle, yet mildly grotesque would be perfect. And definitly updated uniforms that are more individually unique perhaps?
ItsNotASchooner - 9/16/2009, 8:57 AM
After watching Star Trek, I had to wash myself with my Wars soap just to get the stank off. Great movie, though, just freakin' awesome. The sequel I think will be monsterous.
BryEL - 9/16/2009, 8:59 AM
OZY @ Lol!
LEEE777 - 9/16/2009, 9:00 AM
Cool bamf..and maybe stick a picture of Biel with that article too;)
Rorschach01 - 9/16/2009, 9:01 AM
I'm not sure if water boarding torture technique would have an effect on the Klingons, but yea that whole torture aspect is cool. I want to know more about the realationship with
a-whore-aaaahhhh, and Spock. I def can't wait to see Pine again as Kirk.
StrangemannX09 - 9/16/2009, 9:06 AM
my articles always get deleted on this site.
Ozymandias - 9/16/2009, 9:12 AM
Are they gonna finally address the Captain's Log in the sequel? =P
SirPrize - 9/16/2009, 9:14 AM
@ strangemann - I think they should just stop with the relationship thing with Spock and Ms. Galactic Fine A**, they was WAY to weird to watch.
BryEL - 9/16/2009, 9:16 AM
WHY CANT MY ARTICLES EVER MAKE THE FRONT PAGE?
Ozymandias - 9/16/2009, 9:19 AM
Ozy i answered you on the Kick ass article, please stop with the petulant child routine, its getting boring.
Rorschach01 - 9/16/2009, 9:24 AM
Maybe they could do a story with a young General Chang, and in this timeline, explain how he loses his eye and gets that eye patch nailed on.

But it's nice to see that they are trying to respect Gene Roddenberry's vision of Star Trek instead of doing the standard Hollywood thing and bastardizing it.
BLANK - 9/16/2009, 9:29 AM
Can't wait for the sequel.
Bandrews1 - 9/16/2009, 9:31 AM
Ozy - Ror post some good stuff. I appreciate his efforts.
SirPrize - 9/16/2009, 10:01 AM
@Rorschach are you the MOD on thissite just wondering?? nice article by the way
Swiftsword777 - 9/16/2009, 10:09 AM
Nice! Bring on the fanny-headed Klingons! The sequel is gonna be awesome after Star Trek was the best movie of this year (yes it was even better than District 9 which was a very close second)
dancingmonkey08 - 9/16/2009, 10:14 AM
I still haven't seen star trek.....
supermarioworldE - 9/16/2009, 10:47 AM
Water boarding wouldn't work but I gurantee U Bloodwine boarding would. Ka'pla! LOL!!!
Spock - 9/16/2009, 11:11 AM
just what i want in a sci-fi action movie some bullshit liberal social commentary. as much i loved star trek roddenberry was a marxist. i enjoyed some of the later star trek better cause it didnt have alot of that crap in it. hopefully they wont go overboard. j.j. never went overboard with that crap in his shows so hopefully they will reign it in. otherwise ill pass
superdog - 9/16/2009, 12:45 PM
KEEP WRITING THE ARTICLE ROR.THERES ALWAYS NEWS AND YOUR THE GO GETTER.
GUNSMITH - 9/16/2009, 1:01 PM
they better look like pirates. that is the way they were in this time period.
grif - 9/16/2009, 1:50 PM
What's the 2nd one need?: KHAAAAANN!!! Good article Ror.
antz1104 - 9/16/2009, 2:51 PM
This sounds like they're on the right track, when the movie first came out and sequels started being talked about I remember being worried when abrams mentioned khan. I'm glad he's doing his own thing rather than an alternate time line remake of the wrath of khan.
thwhtGuardian - 9/16/2009, 3:04 PM
@Superdog, I don't remember reading that Roddenberry was a Marxist! His ideas weren't totally liberal! He just addressed issues of the time (the 60's). His ideas were way ahead of their time! He was a brilliant man, IMO!

I'm happy to see JJ Abrams and the scriptwriters are staying true to his form about addressing social issues of our day and time!
DDD - 9/16/2009, 3:15 PM
@ supermarioworldE: Damn, tough luck bro. It was good. Just buy it when it comes out. =D
BmanHall - 9/16/2009, 3:58 PM
LOL the possibility of a movie with a deeper meaning, is actually a negative for Rorschach01...what a simpleton...go watch Snydesmen and Bayformers then.
Quagmire14 - 9/16/2009, 4:21 PM
This news sucks. Just make an entertaining story. Ron Moores BattleStar Galactica and George Lucas already ruined good Sci-Fi with "socially relevant" stories. It is what Ron Moore did to ST:TNG when he ruined that show. Guidance councelors in space suck! Fight some aliens, blow stuff up, show alittle skin and entertain us. Don't impose your social opinions upon the public. Wrath of Khan was perfect, just entertaining, so was the last movie. Don't change the formula to "New Coke" just for the hell of it.
Number21 - 9/16/2009, 4:34 PM
@ antz1104
No bloody Khan! This new rebooted series should move ahead and have new plots with old characters being put in new situations, not retreading old ground. But saying that, I would like to see the rebooted universe version of Khan explored in a spin-off book or some kind of CGI animated straight to DVD movie because it would be cool to see the rebooted universe version of Khan but it means the live-action movies dont have to explore it. I would also love to eventually see books or animated movies explore the rebooted universe version of the 79 episodes or the other five movies if the new continuity hasnt stopped the events of the episodes and movies from happening
dancingmonkey08 - 9/16/2009, 5:08 PM
I'm not saying rehash the SAME PLOT with Khan all over again. Have the character there in a major capacity though. Maybe as an ally of Kirk in the second. Then @ the end something horrible happens to Khan's family and THATS why he hates Kirk: set up for the third one. It's like the motto of that crappy H.G Wells remake The Time Machine: no matter what you do to change things the outcome is always the same.
antz1104 - 9/16/2009, 6:02 PM
hahah, well quagmire, long time no see. I've almost missed your miserable whinging on here.

If you read thew article properly you would see..or maybe not, i haven't established quite how much of a peon you are yet. Anyway, obviously a deeper meaning is never a negative, I just don't want another social commentary forced down my throat without any subtlety. Like Abrahms admitted himself, its a fine line to pretentiousness. And after BSG did it so well, every sci fi show is jumping on the "lets mirror whats happening today in our story set tomorrow" bandwagon. It just gets boring and unoriginal after a while.

Clear enough? Or would you like me to simplify it some more for ya?
Rorschach01 - 9/16/2009, 6:07 PM
I really enjoyed STAR TREK it was a great storytelling with stunning visuals. Can't wait what they do with the sequel.
Ü
access - 9/16/2009, 8:18 PM
Number21 socially relevant sci fi is good sci fi. The best episodes of star trek were social commentaries it's what the show was about.
It's like rorchach01 said about it being forced upon you, which is bad, and subtly. When it's tastefully done it's amazing, BSG started out with subtle but lost it some time during the second season, and TNG was pretty subtle all around so I don't understand why you wouldn't want a movie like that.
thwhtGuardian - 9/16/2009, 8:21 PM
Ddd@ Name me one social commentary of star trek that is a conservative idea and I'll buy your argument. I can name about a dozen episodes that are totally liberal ideas. And if people want that then great enjoy it. But as ror said don't force it down our throats. Subtlty is fine but there's a reason why this star trek was the highest grossing ever. No social commentary. And TNG was not subtle. That show was nothing but a Marxist manifesto. No money, no capitalism, and if there was it was bad (ferengi) shows about gays, hunting, removing Indigenlus people from thier lands, everyone under on earth and no individual countries. That was the most radical of them all. At least Kirk punched someone, Jean luc talked to everyone. Towards the end it was horrible.
superdog - 9/16/2009, 9:02 PM
You have some points superdog, star trek is very liberal...and it always has been that way, it's sort of the point of the show. I mean the kind of sci fi the gene was all about was one that elevated man past our current limitations...which goes against any conservative thinking which is dominated at core by a drive to return to the way things used to be, or at the very least keeping the status quot...which isn't very uplifting at all. I mean would you prefer to see gay bashing and rampant imperialism in space? Science fiction has always painted conservatives as the bad guys, that's what it's all about, the very notion of science fiction is a liberal idea, moving to the future progressing as a society breaking free of our cultural bonds. Try and find a conservative idea in any scifi movie or book, if you find one let me know.
thwhtGuardian - 9/16/2009, 9:25 PM
If what was written is what the movie will actually focus on, it will be a great movie. Roddenberry and his team of writers were masterful at weaving real-world issues and politics into Star Trek and bringing what was happening into a better, more palatable light than simply watching the 6 o'clock news. They made Star Trek relevant and relatable even if you weren't a sci-fi fan. I hope Orci and Kurzman are able to bring that to the table for the new Star Trek. Everyone has been fairly vocal with whom they'd like to see as a main antagonist (Khan, Klingons, etc.) but not many people have asked to simply see Star Trek carry on in the tradition of making social commentary within the framework of a science fiction movie. If they can do that, it will be brilliant. It's not easy to do without sounding pretentious or pontificating.
gtrman - 9/16/2009, 11:42 PM
I never saw Roddenberry pontificating or beating people over the head with social comment! He simply presented issues that were relevant at the time and revealed some higher-minded ideas. If someone felt pummeled by the ideas presented then it was their own conscience beating them! Quite a few of the episodes were written by conservative and liberal writers alike.

Contrary to conservative thought, greed is NOT GOOD! But in "Wallstreet" Michael Douglas' conservative capitalistic character declares greed is good! But where has complete capitalistic greed gotten us! Total conservatism or total liberalism or socialism are radical extremes at both ends of the balance. Roddenberry was not a radical liberal. He was in military intelligence before he became a writer. Military intelligence is about as conservative as it gets!

But if you notice in Star Trek on TV there is commerce going on all over the place and people in conformist uniforms. And highly controlling governments. The ideas of Star Trek are progressive but they are more high-minded than simple conservatism or liberal socialism!
DDD - 9/17/2009, 12:49 AM
But pretension and brow-beating in a movie are bad! JJ and his scriptwriters are good at making comments on current issues or ideas and presenting them without pontificating!
Such as on Alias and now Fringe!
DDD - 9/17/2009, 1:06 AM
twthknight@ so theres no room in the future for conservatism? the idea of individual rights and liberty and a mans right to do what he wants without someone telling him what to do or confiscating his property for someone else is a concept that you dont think works in scifi or the future? sucks for you then my friend. its not a matter of going backwards. its a matter of principles that stand up over time and dont sway with the wind. and by the way it is the individual rights and capitalistic desires that has always lifted man past thier limitations. all the technology and modern convenieces, medical strides, and exploration have all been done by "conservative" people and principles. as opposed to liberally sitting around and whining about why someone else has something that you dont and we should all hold hands and hug and look for a future where we all get along. sigh sigh

ddd@ when did greed become a conservative thought? theres plenty of rich liberals out there (obama, kennedy's, every movie star in existence, michael moore). i agree your right, the extremes of both will never work. but in gene roddenberrys world there was no middle. it was all the extreme left, if you didnt see it that way then we just disagree. which is great. disagreement and debate is what freedom is all about. :)
superdog - 9/17/2009, 9:35 AM
I just want another kick ass movie with frickin' laser beams. Like Star Wars used to be. Pew pew pew pew...

And more people being sucked out into space. Good times.


hush - 9/17/2009, 11:24 AM
Superdog I think your confusing liberal thinking and democrats. And don't think many medical break throughs have to do with conservative thinking, science is apolitical by nature, to achieve goals they take the steps that are logical and not bound by either ideology, it's all one thing for them. But as for science fiction conservatism is the standard badguy, I'm not making a judgment call I'm stating a fact. Starwars: the evil empire with imperialistic control over the galaxy, obey or die there is no room for discussion we're right because we are the authority, typical characterizations of conservative thoughts. 1984, Fahrenheit 451 and brave new world go without saying. The terminator is about what happens when the military industial complex moves forward without thinking nd the nuclear arms race. And of course you already mentioned Star trek.
As for a mans right for liberty, as defined in the constitution...well that's the biggest liberal thought of them all. John Locke is practically the father of liberal thinking and the constitution is pretty much based on his work.
There's a difference between liberal thinking and the democratic party, just as conservative thinking is different than the republican party. Again I'm not making a judgement call either way I'm just saying star trek and science fiction as a whole have historically been more liberal than conservative. There's no denying it.
thwhtGuardian - 9/17/2009, 1:11 PM

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